U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt buried at Hyde Park 80 years ago this hour (Apr 15 1945)


Video: 'FDR: A Presidency Revealed: Part 19' (Apr. 15, 1945, at 2:35)

(Sunday, April 15, 1945, 11:00 a.m. EWT; during World War II) — In the hedge-enclosed garden of his ancestral Hyde Park estate in New York, high above the eternal flow of the Hudson, President Franklin D. Roosevelt was laid at rest this morning in the presence of President Harry S. Truman and ranking officials of this country and representatives of other nations. Continue reading U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt buried at Hyde Park 80 years ago this hour (Apr 15 1945)

Andrew Johnson sworn in as 17th president of the United States following Abraham Lincoln’s assassination 160 years ago this hour (Apr 15 1865)


Video: ‘Andrew Johnson: The President Who Wasn’t Lincoln | 5-Minute Videos’

(Saturday, April 15, 1865, 10:00 a.m. local time; during the American Civil War) — Vice President Andrew Johnson, 56, was sworn in as the 17th President of the United States this morning, following the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. Continue reading Andrew Johnson sworn in as 17th president of the United States following Abraham Lincoln’s assassination 160 years ago this hour (Apr 15 1865)

Nazi concentration camp Bergen-Belsen liberated 80 years ago today (Apr 15 1945)


Video: 'Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp — Footage from Liberation // Colorized & Restored'

(Sunday, April 15, 1945, afternoon Central European Summer Time; part of The Holocaust during World War II) — 60,000 (mostly sick) prisoners at the Nazi concentration camp Bergen-Belsen in what is today Lower Saxony in northern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen near Celle, were liberated today by British and Canadian troops. Continue reading Nazi concentration camp Bergen-Belsen liberated 80 years ago today (Apr 15 1945)

U.S. President Abraham Lincoln dies, ‘now belongs to the ages’ 160 years ago this hour (Apr 15 1865)


Video: 'Ken.Burns.The.Civil.War.9of9.The.Better.Angels.Of.Our.Nature' (Lincoln dies at 17:53)

(Saturday, April 15, 1865, 7:22:10 a.m.; during the American Civil War) — U.S. President Abraham Lincoln, 56, died this morning at the Petersen House in Washington, nine hours after he was shot in the head by John Wilkes Booth. Continue reading U.S. President Abraham Lincoln dies, ‘now belongs to the ages’ 160 years ago this hour (Apr 15 1865)

U.S. President Abraham Lincoln mortally wounded at Ford’s Theatre 160 years ago this hour (Apr 14 1865)


Video: 'Ken.Burns.The.Civil.War.9of9.The.Better.Angels.Of.Our.Nature' (Lincoln assassination at 14:49; shot fired at 15:36)

(Good Friday, April 14, 1865, approximately 10:13 p.m.; during the American Civil War) — John Wilkes Booth shot President Abraham Lincoln in the back of the head near point blank range tonight after entering the presidential box at Ford’s Theatre in Washington during a performance of Our American Cousin. Continue reading U.S. President Abraham Lincoln mortally wounded at Ford’s Theatre 160 years ago this hour (Apr 14 1865)

The Lincoln party arrives at Ford’s Theater 160 years ago this hour (Apr 14 1865)


Video: 'Ken.Burns.The.Civil.War.9of9.The.Better.Angels.Of.Our.Nature' (Lincoln arrives at 14:07)

(Good Friday, April 14, 1865, 8:30 p.m.; during the American Civil War) — President Abraham Lincoln, his wife Mary, Major Henry Rathbone and his fiancée Clara Harris arrived at Ford’s Theatre in Washington tonight and settled by into the presidential box. Continue reading The Lincoln party arrives at Ford’s Theater 160 years ago this hour (Apr 14 1865)

Booth instructs fellow conspirators to kill VP Johnson, Seward 160 years ago this hour (Apr 14 1865)


Video: 'Ken.Burns.The.Civil.War.9of9.The.Better.Angels.Of.Our.Nature' (Booth instructors fellow conspirators at 13:39)

(Good Friday, April 14, 1865, 7:00 p.m.; during the American Civil War) — Actor John Wilkes Booth met for a final time with all his fellow conspirators tonight, instructing Lewis Powell to kill Secretary of State William H. Seward at his home, George Atzerodt to kill Vice President Andrew Johnson at his residence, the Kirkwood Hotel, and David E. Herold to guide Powell to the Seward house and then out of Washington to rendezvous with Booth in Maryland. Continue reading Booth instructs fellow conspirators to kill VP Johnson, Seward 160 years ago this hour (Apr 14 1865)

Severe dust storm crosses central Plains 90 years ago this hour (Apr 14 1935)


Video: 'Black Sunday - Decades TV Network'

(Sunday, April 14, 1935, 4:00 p.m. CST; during the Great Depression) — The “Black Sunday” dust storm descended upon the central Plains this afternoon, turning a sunny afternoon into total darkness. Continue reading Severe dust storm crosses central Plains 90 years ago this hour (Apr 14 1935)

Booth learns Lincoln will attend play tonight at Ford’s Theater 160 years ago this hour (Apr 14 1865)


Video: 'Ken.Burns.The.Civil.War.9of9.The.Better.Angels.Of.Our.Nature' (Apr. 14, 1865, afternoon at 13:20-13:39)

(Good Friday, April 14, 1865, at around noon; during the American Civil War) — When actor John Wilkes Booth dropped by Ford’s Theatre today in Washington, D.C., to pick up his mail today, he learned that President Abraham Lincoln and Lt. General Ulysses S. Grant (and their respective wives) would be attending a performance of the British hit comedy Our American Cousin that evening (the Grants would bow out at the last minute, replaced by Major Henry Rathbone and his fiancée Clara Harris, daughter of New York Senator Ira Harris).

American flag flies over Fort Sumter again 160 years ago this hour (Apr 14 1865)


Video: 'Ken.Burns.The.Civil.War.9of9.The.Better.Angels.Of.Our.Nature' (Apr. 14, 1865, at 11:34)

(Good Friday, April 14, 1865, noon; during the American Civil War) — Four years to the day after lowering the Fort Sumter Flag in surrender to Confederate forces, Major General Robert Anderson of the U.S. Army returned to the ruined fort to raise the flag he had lowered at the outbreak of war in 1861.